Hawaii column warns rolling back climate scenarios does not erase real physical risks from warming-induced emissions

A recent Honolulu Star-Advertiser column by Chip Fletcher argues that retiring the high-emissions RCP8.5 scenario does not mean climate risks have diminished. The author points out that the climate system itself is now releasing additional greenhouse gases through warming-induced emissions from oceans, forests, and permafrost. These feedbacks are measurable and growing, not theoretical. The column focuses on Hawaii but applies globally. It warns against using the scenario change as an excuse to relax clean energy goals. The real danger is that natural carbon sinks are weakening as oceans warm and wildfires intensify. The piece is a direct rebuttal to anyone who thinks the climate crisis is easing just because one extreme scenario was retired.